Monday Apple Rumors: Thinner Retina MacBook to Bow at WWDC

by Christopher Freeburn | June 3, 2013 10:03 am

Monday Apple Rumors: Thinner Retina MacBook to Bow at WWDC

[1]Here are your Apple rumors[2] and AAPL news items for today:

Slimmer: At its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) next week, Apple (AAPL[3]) will unveil an upgraded 13-inch MacBook Pro[4], AppleInsider notes. The new MacBook Pro will feature a Retina screen and a upgraded FaceTime camera, possibly offering 1080p resolution. The prediction comes from KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The new MacBook will be thinner than the current model and will run on Intel’s (INTC[5]) new Haswell chips, which are expected to boost battery life. The WWDC takes place between June 10 and June 14 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco. Apple is also expected to debut iOS 7, whose interface has been completely overhauled by Jony Ive and minor updates to its MacBook Air line.

Rush: Apple is moving to conclude negotiations[6] with major record labels in order to debut its new Internet radio service at the WWDC, the New York Times notes. Apple has been in talks with the three biggest record labels for months, but landing deals with the companies has been complicated Apple’s desire to create a service model similar to that of Pandora (P[7]), allowing users greater control over the music they listen to. Apple has concluded deals with Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group, but has yet to seal an agreement with Sony‘s (SNE[8]) Sony Music Entertainment. Music labels have demanded higher licensing fees from Apple.

Court Date: The government will begin prosecuting Apple[9] for alleged e-book price-fixing on Monday, NPR notes. The iPad maker is facing allegations that it colluded with five book publishers to set prices for digital books retailed through Apple’s iBookstore. The five publishers — Macmillan, HarperCollins, Penguin, Hachette and Simon & Schuster — have concluded separate settlements with the Department of Justice. Apple has denied the charges. However, the government has obtained potentially damaging communications between Apple executives and the publishers and other media companies, including News Corp. (NWSA[10]). Based on those documents, U.S. District Court Judge Denise L. Cote issued a preliminary ruling saying that the DOJ would likely “be able to show at trial direct evidence that Apple knowingly participated in and facilitated a conspiracy to raise prices of e-books, and that the circumstantial evidence in this case, including the terms of the agreements, will confirm that.”

For more about the company, check out our previous Apple Rumors[11] stories.